Page 72 of Beneath the Flames
The fact that the infernal Fae would just abandon me to this task had my steps falling heavier, angry huffs escaping my lips.
I probably should have asked if there was anything dangerous awaiting me in the cave.My eyes swung left and right, expecting some kind of creature to spring out of a hiding place and eat me whole.
Don’t let your imagination get away from you, Maren.
The only consolation I had was that Rhydian needed me to break the curse.If he thought I might die on this task, he would’ve warned me, prepared me a little more.
Wouldn’t he?
I kept my eyes peeled for a cave, but I had yet to spot one.What if this was all for nothing?What if there was no cave, no relic?
Well, at least you got a good workout in.
I rolled my eyes.
A strange bubbling noise came from the lake, but when I searched the surface, I noticed nothing out of the ordinary.I trudged on, my legs feeling heavier by the minute, and nearly stumbled over a large rock when I finally saw it.
A lava cave tucked between two large boulders.
Quickening my pace, I made for the cave, anxious to get inside.Surely if the cave existed, then the relic I was supposed to find existed too, right?
That bubbling noise sounded again, but it faded to the background of my mind as I fixated on getting to the cave so I could get off this volcano.
The opening to the cave was barely taller than me, though it was wide.
And it was pitch black inside.I wished I had a flashlight, or even a stick I could use as a torch.Why hadn’t Rhydian sent me on this task more prepared?It wasn’t like I had super-enhanced vision like he did.I searched around the outside of the cave for something I could use as a torch, but there was nothing.
“Yeah, search a dark cave for a relic that’ll break a curse,” I mimicked in a whiny voice.“Piece of cake.”
A shuddering breath pooled out of my lips as I stepped inside.The glow from the lava behind me slowly faded as I went deeper into the cave, scooting my feet forward little by little in case there was something to trip on or worse—a hole I could fall to my death in.
After countless minutes of shuffling forward and begging my eyes to adjust to the dark, I rubbed at them when a faint blue light slowly came into focus.The closer I got, the brighter it became, illuminating the cave enough that I no longer had to tiptoe my way across the hardened lava floor.
There were loose rocks scattered on the ground, but for the most part, the inside of the cave was smooth and barren of obstacles that might kill me.The thought that this was too easy crossed my mind, but I was so tired, so relieved to have found it, that I didn’t question it.
I blinked against the blue light as I approached it, the sudden brightness making my eyes water after being in such complete darkness.When I finally found the source, it was an object lying on a flat rock against the back wall of the cave.It looked like a small golden diamond with glowing blue wings off each side.
I hesitated for only a moment before I reached out and gingerly gripped it between my fingers.
The moment I touched it, the light went out.
And then an ear-piercing, heart-stopping, monstrous shriek split the dark.
Something had gone very, very wrong.
I knew it the moment Maren entered the cave.As soon as she disappeared inside, it felt like the volcano…came alive.That was the only way to describe it.Suddenly the lava grew brighter, beginning to ripple and move as if it were water and not magma.It made strange bubbling noises, and the ground trembled ever so slightly.
It was impossible for Mount Kharos to erupt because of the curse, so what was happening?
An urgent, overwhelming feeling that I needed to get Maren out of the cave, away from the volcano, consumed me, but I was too far.Why hadn’t I gone with her?The magic of the curse prevented me from going inside the cave, but nothing would have stopped me from walking around the lake with her.
I should have expected something to go wrong.This was adying, angry land after all.
I never should have left Maren’s side.
Now she was on the other side of the volcano, too far for me to reach.With my magic mere wisps in my veins, there was nothing I could do to help her.
Rhydian, you fool.
